Hub leg joint system for a shelter

ABSTRACT

A hub leg joint system is provided in which twisting of poles for a shelter is prevented. The hub leg joint system includes a hub having a socket or opening for receiving an end of a pole for a shelter. The opening and the end are configured so that the end may be inserted into the opening, but may not be rotated therein. As an example, the opening and the ends may have a cross section that is oblong in shape.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to shelters, and more specifically toa shelter having a pole frame.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Camping is a popular recreational activity enjoyed by many. Some peoplecamp so that they may enjoy the outdoors, and others use camping as aninexpensive alternative to staying in a hotel.

One structure that is often used while camping is a shelter. In general,a shelter is a structure, typically framed with poles, that includes acovering or canopy that provides protection from the rain and/or sun.For camping, a shelter is typically made of fabric and foldable poles sothat the shelter may be folded into a compact configuration fortransport and storage. The shelter may or may not have walls, such asscreen walls. The shelter may be, for example, set up over a picnicarea, used adjacent to a tent as a storage area, serve as protectionfrom the rain, or may be used as a screened area to avoid insects.

Although shelters work well for their intended purpose, in practice, theshelters may not be stable enough to handle higher winds. Some prior artshelters have addressed this problem by providing additional poles inthe frame, such as poles that extend horizontally between the supportpoles for the shelter. Such additional poles add to the weight and sizeof the stored shelter, and add installation complexity and time.However, a shelter that has a minimal number of poles is subject tostability problems, mainly because the connection of the poles has beenknown to twist, resulting in a collapse of the shelter.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of theinvention in order to provide a basic understanding of the invention.This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is notintended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or todelineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to presentsome embodiments of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude tothe more detailed description that is presented later.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a hub leg jointsystem is provided in which twisting of poles for a shelter isprevented. The hub leg joint system includes a hub having a socket oropening for receiving an end of a support pole for a shelter. Theopening and the end are configured so that the end may be inserted intothe opening, but may not be rotated therein. As an example, the openingand the ends may have a cross section that is oblong in shape.

The connection of the pole to the hub prevents rotation of the polerelative to the hub. Such a connection may be provided for each of thepole attachments to the hub. Thus, stability is provided for theshelter.

Other features of the invention will become apparent from the followingdetailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings, inwhich:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of a shelter incorporating anembodiment of the invention, with a fabric canopy for the shelter shownin phantom;

FIG. 2 is an exploded side perspective view of a hub leg joint system inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the section lines 3-3 of FIG. 2;and

FIG. 4 is a side perspective view of a second shelter incorporating asecond embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, various embodiments of the presentinvention will be described. For purposes of explanation, specificconfigurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the embodiments. However, it will also be apparent toone skilled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout the specific details. Furthermore, well-known features may beomitted or simplified in order not to obscure the embodiment beingdescribed.

Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numeralsrepresent like parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 shows ashelter 20 incorporating an embodiment of the invention. The shelter 20includes a pole assembly 22 over which is extended a fabric canopy 24.The fabric canopy 24 is shown in phantom in the drawings so as not toobscure the pole assembly 22. The fabric canopy 24 may be made of avariety of different materials, including rip stop nylon, canvas,polyethylene, or other suitable materials. In addition, while theembodiment shown in the drawings does not include walls, walls may beprovided on one or some of the sides of the shelter 20. The walls may bemade of the same fabric material as the fabric canopy 24, or may be madeof a different material, such as screen. Walls for shelters are wellknown in the art, and a person of ordinary skill may select a suitablefabric and design for a desired configuration and use of the shelter 20.

The pole assembly 22 shown in FIG. 1 includes four upright poles 26, 28,30, and 32. The upright poles 26-32 may be formed of segments ofmetallic poles, such as steel, aluminum, or another suitable material.Such poles 26-32 may be attached end-to-end to form a complete uprightpole in a manner known in the art. The four poles 26-32 for the poleassembly 22 are identical in shape, and therefore are interchangeable.However, embodiments of the invention could utilize different sizes andshapes of upright poles. However, the structure shown provides anembodiment with the upright poles 26-32 being interchangeable, thusrequiring less thought in preparation for assembly.

Each of the upright poles 26-32 includes a bend 33 approximately halfway along its length. In this manner, each of the upright poles 26-32,when installed, has a lower portion 34 that extends substantiallyvertically, and an upper portion 35 that extends at an angle tovertical, in the embodiment shown at approximately 60 degrees tovertical. The lower portion 34 is separated from the upper portion 35 atthe bend 33.

Curved upright poles such as are shown in FIG. 1 are known in the art,and provide the benefit of expanding shelter space without making ashelter taller. That is, if the poles did not include a bend such as thebend 33, to have the same amount of area covered by the shelter, theshelter must be taller.

Although each of the upright poles 26, 28, 30, and 32 is shown as acontinuous pole that extends from the top portion of the shelter 20 tothe ground, as described above, the poles could be made from a pluralityof pole sections. These pole sections may be connected by an internalshock cord in a manner known in the art. In addition, one or moreintermediate structures may be provided between different sections of anupright pole, for example between the upper and lower portions 34, 35.

The rear two upright poles 26, 28 extend to a rear hub 36, and the fronttwo upright poles 30, 32 extend to a front hub 37. The hubs 36, 37preferably are made of plastic or another suitable material. In theembodiment shown, the hubs 36, 37 are identical in construction, and aretherefore interchangeable, providing ease shelter construction andmanufacture. However, the hubs 36, 37 may be configured in a differentway by a person of skill in the art so as to provide a shelter of adesired configuration and size.

A ridge pole 38 extends between the two hubs 36, 37. The ridge pole 38provides two functions. First, the ridge pole 38 supports an upperportion of the fabric canopy 24. Second, the ridge pole separates thetwo hubs 36, 37 so that the shelter 20 may cover more ground withouthaving to raise the height of the shelter 20 or decrease the angle ofthe fabric canopy 24, which could result in undesirable pooling of waterat the edges of the fabric canopy 24.

Detail of the hub 36 is shown in FIG. 2. As stated above, this hub 36 isidentical to the hub 37. Thus, for ease of description, the structure ofonly one of the hubs, hub 36, is described here.

The hub 36 is triangularly shaped, with openings 40, 42, 44 at each ofthe corners. The openings 40-44 are elongate holes that extend towardthe center of the hub 36. The opening 44 includes a round cross section,while the openings 40, 42 are oblong, and have a cross section havingflat sides 43 (FIG. 3) and rounded tops and bottoms 45.

Each of the openings 40-44 includes a slot 46 extending through the topof the hub 36 and into the opening. The openings 40, 42 are configuredto receive ends 48, 50 of the upright poles 26, 28. These ends 48, 50are slightly narrower in cross section than the remainder of the poles26, 28, are oblong in shape, and include flat sides 49 and rounded topsand bottoms 51, as can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3. The ends 48, 50 arepreferably sized so that the flat sides 49 and rounded tops and bottoms51 fit tightly against the inside of the flat sides 43 (FIG. 3) androunded tops and bottoms 45 of the openings 40, 42.

A clip 52, 54 is arranged inside each of the ends 48, 50 of the uprightspoles 26, 28. A portion of each clip 52, 54 extends out of a slot 55from the top portion of the respective upright pole 26 or 28. As isknown in the art, the clip 52, 54 is designed to press inward as therespective end 48, 50 of the poles 26, 28 is extended into the opening40 or 42. The clip 52, 54 then pops upward and out of the respectiveslot 46 for the opening 40 or 42. A similar clip (not shown) may beprovided at the ends of the ridge pole 38.

The flat sides 49 and rounded tops and bottoms 51 of the ends 48, 50 fittightly against the inside of the flat sides 43 and rounded tops andbottoms 45 of the openings 40, 42, preventing rotation of the upperportion 35 of the upright poles 26, 28 within the hub 36. This featureprovides advanced stability for the shelter 20, because prevention ofrotation of the upper portion 35 of the upright poles 26, 28 preventsthe lower portion 34 from moving in the directions of the arrows K and Mshown in FIG. 1. Reducing this twisting effect increases the stabilityof the shelter 20, making the shelter more stable in strong windconditions.

Although the configuration of the ends 48, 50 and the openings 40, 42works well to prevent twisting, other configurations may be used. Ingeneral, any configuration that permits the upright poles 26, 28 to beattached to the hubs without the poles rotating relative to the hubswork perform this function. One example is the oblong shape fo theopenings 40, 42 and ends 48, 50. Another example includes at least oneprotrusion and a corresponding abutment surface in the respectiveopening. However, the particular configuration shown in the drawings isconvenient in that the structure enjoys the benefit of the strength oftubular poles, yet has a configuration which prevents twisting.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-3, the opening 44 for receiving theridge pole 38 does not have an irregular cross section like the openings40, 42. This is because twisting at the ridge pole 38 does not affectthe stability of the shelter 20. However, if desired, the ridge poleopening 44 may also include an end and opening that are configured toprevent rotation of the ridge pole 38.

To aid in alignment and assembly of the upright poles 26, 28 to the hub36, indicia, such as the letters “A” and “B” shown in FIG. 2 may beprovided near the edge of the respective opening 40 or 42, and the end48 or 50 of the respective upright poles 26, 28. In this manner, a usermay quickly assemble the upright poles 26, 28 with the lower portion 34of the upright poles 26, 28 being directed in the proper, downwardposition, without a user attempting to attach either of the uprightpoles 26, 28 to the opening 44.

Although each of the upright poles 26, 28, 30, and 32 is shown as acontinuous pole that extends from the top portion of the shelter 20 tothe ground, as described above, the poles could be made from a pluralityof pole sections. These pole sections may be connected by an internalshock cord in a manner known in the art. In addition, one or moreintermediate structures may be provided between different sections of anupright pole, for example between the upper and lower portions 35, 34.However, to avoid rotation of the lower portion 34 of an upright poles26-32, there should be no rotation between the attachment of therespective upright pole to the hub 36 and a position on the pole justbelow the bend 33 for the upright pole. Thus, if segments are providedbetween this location and the hub 36, these segments should beconfigured so that, when installed, they do not rotate relative to oneanother.

Another embodiment of a shelter 56 is shown in FIG. 4. The shelter 56includes a pole assembly 58 having four upright poles 60, 62, 64, 66covered at a top portion by a fabric canopy 68. This shelter 56 issimilar to the shelter 20, but does not include a ridge pole 38 and hasonly one hub 70. In addition, the hub 70 has four spokes for attachmentof the four upright poles 60-66.

Because each of the openings in the hub 70 attach to an upright pole60-66, preferably each of the each of the upright poles will attach torespective openings for the hub 70 without permitting rotation. Forexample, each opening may including an oblong cross section similar tothe one shown for the openings 40 and 42 in FIGS. 2 and 3. As such, eachconnection of the upright poles 60-66 to the hub 70 is formed so thatthe respective upright pole 60-66 does not rotate relative to the hub70.

Other embodiments of shelters are also contemplated. For example, afive-sided shelter may include a five-spoke hub attached to five uprightpoles.

The removable, non-rotating attachment of the upright poles to the hubis convenient in that it avoids rotation of the upright poles relativeto the hub and adds stability to a shelter. The configuration disclosedin the drawings does so with little added cost and little to noreduction in strength of the upright poles.

The upright poles disclosed in the drawings are advantageous in thatthey provide the sole support for the fabric canopy 24. Thus, theshelter may be made lighter, and is easy to assembly and store. The factthat the upper portion 35 and the bend 33 cannot rotate provides adownwardly extending structural support for the lower portions of theupright poles that cannot rotate. As such, additional support for thedownwardly extending structural support, such as poles or otherstructures, is not needed.

If desired, different attachments may be made between the hubs and theupright poles. For example, the hubs may include a protrusion over whichan end of an upright pole is seated. To this end, the hub may be anystructure that is used to attach the upper portion 35 of two uprightpoles.

In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, if desired, inorder to avoid rotation of one of the upright poles (e.g., the uprightpoles 60-66) relative to a hub (e.g., the hub 70), that particularupright pole may be formed integrally with, or permanently connected to,the hub 70. The other upright poles and ridge pole 38 (if applicable),however, are preferably removable, so that the pole assembly 22 or 58may be disassembled into a compact configuration for storage.

Other variations are within the spirit of the present invention. Thus,while the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative constructions, a certain illustrated embodiment thereof isshown in the drawings and has been described above in detail. It shouldbe understood, however, that there is no intention to limit theinvention to the specific form or forms disclosed, but on the contrary,the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions,and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention, asdefined in the appended claims.

The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in thecontext of describing the invention (especially in the context of thefollowing claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and theplural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted bycontext. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing”are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, butnot limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. The term “connected” is to beconstrued as partly or wholly contained within, attached to, or joinedtogether, even if there is something intervening. Recitation of rangesof values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method ofreferring individually to each separate value falling within the range,unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value isincorporated into the specification as if it were individually recitedherein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitableorder unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearlycontradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplarylanguage (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to betterilluminate embodiments of the invention and does not pose a limitationon the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language inthe specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimedelement as essential to the practice of the invention.

Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, includingthe best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention.Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to thoseof ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. Theinventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations asappropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practicedotherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, thisinvention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subjectmatter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicablelaw. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in allpossible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unlessotherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

1. A shelter, comprising: a pole assembly, comprising: a hub; a firstupper pole and a second upper pole, the first upper pole being removablyand nonrotatably attached to the hub, and the second upper pole beingattached to the hub; and a first downwardly extending structural supportconnected to the first pole and fixed for rotation therewith; and acanopy for extending over the pole assembly.
 2. The shelter of claim 1,wherein the second upper pole is removably and nonrotatably attached tothe hub.
 3. The shelter of claim 2, further comprising a seconddownwardly extending structural support connected to the second pole andfixed for rotation therewith.
 4. The shelter of claim 3, furthercomprising a first lower pole connected to and extending downward fromthe first downwardly extending structural support and a second lowerpole connected to and extending downward from the second downwardlyextending structural support.
 5. The shelter of claim 4, wherein thepole assembly comprises: a first upright pole, wherein the first uprightpole comprises the first upper pole, the first downwardly extendingstructural support, and the first lower pole; and a second upright pole,wherein the second upright pole comprises the second upper pole, thesecond downwardly extending structural support, and the second lowerpole.
 6. The shelter of claim 2, wherein an end of the first poleextends into a first opening on the hub to attach the first pole to thehub, the first opening and the end comprising first structures thatpermit attachment, but not rotation relative to one another and whereinan end of the second pole extends into a second opening on the hub toattach the second pole to the hub, the second opening and the endcomprising second structures that permit attachment, but not rotationrelative to one another.
 7. The shelter of claim 6, wherein the firststructures and second structures each comprise oblong cross sections. 8.The shelter of claim 7, wherein the oblong cross sections comprise flatportions that engage each other when the respective pole is inserted inthe respective opening.
 9. The shelter of claim 1, further comprising afirst lower pole connected to and extending downward from the firstdownwardly extending structural support.
 10. The shelter of claim 9,wherein the pole assembly comprises a first upright pole, wherein thefirst upright pole comprises the first upper pole, the first downwardlyextending structural support, and the first lower pole.
 11. The shelterof claim 10, wherein the pole assembly comprises four upright poles,each connected to the hub and comprising an upper pole, a downwardlyextending structural support, and a lower pole similar to the firstupper pole, the first downwardly extending structural support, and thefirst lower pole.
 12. The shelter of claim 10, wherein the pole assemblycomprises two hubs and four upright poles, two of the upright polesconnected to a first hub and the other two connected to a second hub,each upright pole comprising an upper pole, a downwardly extendingstructural support, and a lower pole similar to the first upper pole,the first downwardly extending structural support, and the first lowerpole.
 13. The shelter of claim 1, wherein an end of the first poleextends into a first opening on the hub to attach the first pole to thehub, the first opening and the end comprising first structures thatpermit attachment, but not rotation, relative to one another.
 14. Theshelter of claim 13, wherein the first structures and second structureseach comprise oblong cross sections.
 15. The shelter of claim 14,wherein the oblong cross sections comprise flat portions that engageeach other when the respective pole is inserted in the respectiveopening.
 16. The shelter of claim 1, wherein the pole assembly comprisesfour upright poles, each comprising an upper pole, a downwardlyextending structural support, and a lower pole similar to the firstupper pole, the first downwardly extending structural support, and thefirst lower pole.
 17. A shelter, comprising: a pole assembly,comprising: a hub; a first upper pole and a second upper pole, and thesecond upper pole being attached to the hub; means for removably andnonrotatably attaching the first upper pole to the hub; and a firstdownwardly extending structural support connected to the first pole andfixed for rotation therewith; and a canopy for extending over the poleassembly.
 18. The shelter of claim 17, further comprising means forremovably and nonrotatably attaching the first upper pole to the hub.19. The shelter of claim 17, further comprising a first lower poleconnected to and extending downward from the first downwardly extendingstructural support.
 20. The shelter of claim 17, wherein the poleassembly comprises a first upright pole, wherein the first upright polecomprises the first upper pole, the first downwardly extendingstructural support, and the first lower pole.